A K LEO T H E
V O I C E
Ser v i ng t he st udents of t he Un iversit y of Hawa i ‘ i at M ā noa si nce 1922
Iced sweets and fall treats Honolulu’s best pumpkin patches Features 3
Snyder v. Phelps A question of free speech Opinions 7
W E DN E SDAY, OCT. 13 to T H U R SDAY, OCT. 14, 2 010
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Volu me 105 Issue 33
Learning communities grant contributes to public education COMPILED BY DANIEL JACKSON Staff Reporter
S U N DAY, O C T. 10 A student reported the theft of an HP laptop, valued at $400, from the Sinclair Library. The laptop disappeared from the study area after the student left it unattended while he went outside to smoke. F R I DAY, O C T. 8 A student reported the theft of a mo-ped from the Hale Wainani bike rack. A student reported the theft of a bicycle from the Hale Lokelani bike rack.
T H U R S DAY, O C T. 7 A non-student, who had been reported in the past for disturbing others, was trespassed from Campus Center for criminal property damage and harassing students. According to witnesses, the suspect, who appeared confused, borrowed a pen, which he then used to write on a display board, “There is no loose Japanese translation for automaton.” A Hale Aloha Ilima resident reported the theft of a cell phone from the student lounge.
W E D N E S DAY, O C T. 6 A student reported being assaulted in the parking lot behind the Hale Aloha Cafeteria. The victim stated that he was approached by a small man, who he thought See CampusBeat, page 3
JOEL KUTAKA / KA LEO O HAWAI‘I
The grant for Smaller Learning Communities will not only restructure traditional classrooms, but will also change the way in which classroom materials are used. DANIEL JACKSON Staff Reporter Under a federal program that is revolutionizing the way teachers teach, five Hawai‘i schools were awarded $10 million as part of a strategy designed to create a more personalized learning experience for students. McKinley, Pearl City, Castle, Maui and Kapa‘a high schools will use the grants to reorganize traditional, and often large, classrooms into more effi cient “smaller learning communities.” “Teachers should expect revolutionary transformations in the way that we do schooling. In fact, teachers must embrace the changes and play a central role in the transformation,” said Jeffrey Moniz, Director of Secondary Education at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa College of Education, in an e-mail response.
In a Sept. 30 press release, the U.S. Department of Education announced almost $100 million in grants aimed at high school reform and education improvement, with $52.2 million earmarked for Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) programs. The program awards are granted to large public high schools with student enrollments of 1,000 or more to implement smaller learning communities and activities designed to improve student academic achievement. The Hawai‘i schools were awarded $3.4 million for the fi rst two years of the grant, with the balance of the $10 million to be awarded for the following three years, said Ann Mahi, principal of Roosevelt High School and one of the writers of the grant. “The focus of the SLC grant is to prepare all students to be college and career ready upon graduation
from high school,” said Mahi. The strategy includes not only restructuring traditional classrooms, but also redefi ning the tools through which classroom material is exchanged. Much of this reorganization is happening via technology and social networking sites that “fit well with recent advances that have transformed the ways people connect and form community,” said Moniz. “Teachers have become learners,” said Mahi, stressing the importance of understanding and utilizing the most current technology in order to give students a more global perspective. Research has shown SLCs and complementary personalization strategies to reduce disruptive behavior, create a more orderly learning environment and increase attendance and graduation rates, according to the program’s website.
“The advantages of being small stem from having more opportunities for personal contact from caring teachers. Students don’t get lost in the shuffle. Large public high schools can be intimidating, impersonal places if they don’t have ways to institutionalize smallness,” said Moniz. Used as an organizing tool for large schools, SLCs include innovations, such as freshman academies, multi-grade academies organized around career interests, groups of students, known as “houses,” that remain together throughout high school, and schools-within-a-school. SLC teachers in certain subjects serve as “core teachers,” responsible for the same group of students for several years. Students are able to specialize in “career pathways” designed to provide them with an early introduction to careers and occupations. Arts and Communication, Business, Health Services, Natural Resources, Industrial and Engineering Technology, and Public and Human Services are among those available in Hawai‘i public schools. Students are provided “a seamless transition from secondary to postsecondary education, as well as a satisfying career,” through the use of Career Pathways, according to the Career and Technical Education Center at UH. According to Mahi, Roosevelt High School, which received SLC grants in 2002 and 2008, has implemented the Career Pathways model and now boasts an 89 percent graduation rate, with 73 percent going on to pursue degrees at two- and four-year colleges. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average freshman graduation rate for Hawai‘i in 2008 was 76 percent. “All of this is because we are being supported by the Smaller Learning Communities grant,” said Mahi.